(
German for ) uses at least 52% wheat to barley malt to make a light-coloured top-fermenting beer. (
Dutch for ) uses flavorings such as
coriander and
orange peel. Belgian white beers are often made with raw unmalted wheat. German and Belgian are termed because has the same
etymological root as in most
West Germanic languages (including English). Other wheat beer styles, such as Berliner Weiße, Gose, and Lambic, are made with a significant proportion of wheat.
Weizenbier '
() or , in the southern parts of Bavaria usually called ' (; literally , referring to the pale air-dried malt, as opposed to made from dark malt dried over a hot kiln), is a beer, traditionally from
Bavaria, in which a significant proportion of
malted
barley is replaced with malted
wheat. Wheat beer was introduced in Bavaria in the 15th century from neighbouring
Bohemia. Because of reinheitsgebot| (German beer purity law), only beer made from barley was allowed to be brewed in Bavaria up until 1548, when
William IV, Duke of Bavaria, gave Baron Hans VI von Degenberg a special privilege to brew and sell wheat beer. By law, brewed in Germany must use a "top-fermenting"
yeast. Specialized strains of yeast are used which produce overtones of banana and clove as by-products of
fermentation. The Hefeweizen style is particularly noted for its low hop bitterness (about 15
IBUs) and relatively high carbonation a metabolite of
ferulic acid, the result of fermentation by top-fermenting yeast appropriate for the style. s phenolic character has been described as "clove" and "medicinal" ("Band-aid") but also smoky. Other more typical but less assertive flavour notes produced by yeast include "banana" (
amyl acetate), "bubble gum", and sometimes "vanilla" (
vanillin). Other renowned brands are
Augustiner,
Weihenstephaner,
Schneider (a bronze-coloured specialty), and
Andechser. Regional brands in Bavaria are Hopf, Unertl,
Ayinger, Schweiger and Plank.
Aventinus is an example of Weizen
Doppelbock, stronger and darker version of Weizenbock, made by the
G. Schneider & Sohn brewery in
Kelheim. British brewers producing cask-conditioned varieties include
Oakleaf ,
Hoskins White Dolphin, Fyfe Weiss Squad and
Oakham White Dwarf.
Witbier '''''' (, ), or simply is a barley/wheat, top-fermented
beer brewed mainly in
Belgium and the
Netherlands. It gets its name due to suspended yeast and wheat proteins, which cause the beer to look hazy, or white, when cold. Today, along with hops it usually contains a blend of spices, such as
coriander,
orange, and
bitter orange. As early as the 16th and 17th century, the white beers of
Hoegaarden and
Leuven were renowned. Along with barley malt and unmalted barley it contained some oats, though apart from hops no other spices were used. The barley was usually not
kilned but left to dry on attics where the wind was allowed to blow past it, in order to obtain a light colour. The style was revived by
Pierre Celis at the
Hoegaarden Brewery in Belgium and the
Celis Brewery in the United States and is traditionally made with up to 50%
raw wheat rather than wheat
malt. It probably was Celis who started adding the various spices. The beers have a somewhat
sour taste due to the presence of
lactic acid or
acetic acid, much more pronounced in the past than today. Also, the suspended yeast in the beer causes some continuing fermentation in the bottle.
Other varieties A minor variety of wheat beer is represented by Berliner Weiße| (), which is low in alcohol (2.5% to 3% ABV) and intentionally tart. Sweetened syrups of lemon, raspberry, or
woodruff herb are often added before drinking. Gose| is similar to , but slightly stronger at around 4% ABV. Its ingredients include coriander and salt, which are unusual for German beers, but are traditional for that style of beer. Belgian
lambic is also made with wheat and barley, but differs from nearly all beers in the use of wild yeast for
spontaneous fermentation. A variation on the
barley wine style involves adding a large quantity of
wheat to the mash bill, resulting in what is referred to as wheat wine. This style originated in the United States in the 1980s. ==Names and types==